Status Updates From Buzz Books 2015: Spring/Summer

"Creatures of the Day" by Irvin D. Yalom. 3.5 stars. Interesting read. Kind of...odd, for want of a better word, but written in a way to engage the curiosity of the reader. Left me wanting more.

"Unforgettable" by Scott Simon. 5 stars. She sounds like an awesome mom. I want to read this book. It's funny and interesting. Definitely grabs the reader.

"The Wild Oats Project" by Robin Rinaldi. Zero stars. Disgusting. My husband doesn't want to have kids, so I'm going to have lovers instead? What about the sanctity of marriage? Why even bloody bother? I can't STAND cheaters. This is just a little kid tantrum gone bad. I can't have kids, so I'm gonna go and get VD and bring it home. So there! Nya Nya! Repugnant.

"Bettyville" by George Hodgman. 2 stars. Slooooow and booooring. I'm sure it's a sad story, I don't mean to be heartless, but the way it was delivered, ugh! It just didn't grab me.

"The Battle of Versailles" by Robin Givhan. 4.5 stars. I love scrappy underdog stories. This one is about American fashion designers showing the French that America has what it takes in the fashion world. Go 'Merica!

"Audrey and Bill" by Edward Z. Epstein. 5 huge, honkin' stars! Who DOESN'T love Audrey Hepburn? A MUST for Audrey and Bill Holden fans.

"Move Your Bus" by Ron Clark. 4.5 stars. I'm a runner and I have a VERY strong suspicions of what players others in my office are. Good book, with analogies that are easy to follow and understand. It has merit.

"Pieces of My Mother" by Melissa Cistaro. 4 stars. I definitely want to know more. I'm assuming her mother left due to a mental health issue and not because her kids were horrible, but the excerpt didn't get to that part. The mother's unsent letters are what most intrigue me.

"Grow Your Value" by Mika Brzezinski. 4 stars. Self-help book for the super-stressed working mother. Helpful even if you aren't a mom, a career woman or even a female. We all could stand to brush up on our self-awareness. This book seems to be a good start for someone who hasn't done so or done a re-evaluation in a while. Strongly written with clear personal examples by the author.

"Love is Love" by Maria Bello. 3 stars. Oh. My. Goodness. I want to know more about that parasite she got while in Haiti. What's it called? How is it transmitted? How do I avoid being eaten alive from the inside out?!? That was so terrifying, I didn't really get to into her self contemplation, come to self moment the parasite caused. Sounds like she has had an interesting life. But I wanna know more about that bug!

"Dietland" by Sarai Walker. 1 star. Ok, I'm going to get into a soap box here. Feel free to walk on by quickly without making eye contact. I HATE how people don't understand that eating how we are genetically programmed to eat is the best way to eat for short and long term health. Gastric bipass is not the answer. Paleo/primal blueprint. Check it out. (Mic drop, walk off stage. Knowledge bomb.)

"The Book of Speculation" by Erika Swyler. 3 stars. Interesting, well written. Grabs the reader's attention, but gently.

"Kitchens of the Great Midwest" by J. Ryan Stradal. 3 stars. I don't enjoy books where the MC gets bullied. Amazing it still happens, despite adults outlawing it... HA! Adults are so clueless and powerless when it comes to kids and they HAVE NO CLUE. It's pathetic.

"War of the Encyclopaedists" by Christopher Robinson. 2 stars. Sadly, I was never a hep 20-something, so this book is not connecting with me. Not my type of book. Not bad, just not for me.

"Church of Marvels" by Leslie Parry. 2 stars. Boooorrring. Again, not my bag.

"The Sympathizer" by Viet Thanh Nguyen. 2 stars. Meh. Double agent working for the Viet Cong and the other side. Not my thing.

"The Unfortunates" by Sophie McManus. 2 stars. I don't enjoy family sagas or rich people problems. This appears to be both. Also not written in a way that grabs me. Pass.

"The Luckiest Girl" by Jessica Knoll. 1.5 stars. Don't care bout some "perfect" chick trying to keep up with the Jonses and acting that everything is fine when she has unresolved issues from her past. Skipped.

"Benefit of the Doubt" by Neal Griffin. 2 stars. Not grippingly written and not in my wheelhouse. If you're into police procedural mysteries with senseless to the reader murder, this is for you. Not my bag.

"Muse" by Jonathan Galassi. 1.5 stars. Booooorrrriiiinnnng. It's too insider. A reader on the outside has no idea who is being referred to and both real and made up "big" names are tossed around, so it's confusing. Are the names I don't know fake or big names I'm too uncluttered to know? Too much about egotistical artists who may or may not exist. Who cares? Not me.

"Normal" by Graeme Cameron. 1.5 stars. It super-duper scares and concerns me when an author writes scenes of murder, death and dismemberment so matter-of-factly. Especially when it's of a child/teen. It almost seems like this was written for the shock value. Not my cuppa. Well written though. May be up someone else's alley. Just not mine.

"Come Away With Me" by Karma Brown. 3 stars. Meh. Kinda depressing. Contemporary, which isn't my favorite genre. It has to be Goldilocks "just right" for me to enjoy contemporary. Not bad, but not right for me.

"Second Life" by S. J. Watson. 3.5 stars. Very interesting. I like the way it's written. I would try it.

"Seveneves" by Neal Stephenson. 5 stars. I want to see where he goes with this idea. It sounded interesting to me before and now that I read a bit of it, I want to read more. I tend to not be able to get into his works, so getting into this one gives me hope.

"Let Me Die in His Footsteps" by Lori Roy. 5 stars. SUPER interesting! Wasn't sure about it, but I love the MC and I want to get into the mystery of the book. I definitely want to read this!

"The Hand That Feeds You" by Amy Hempel and Jill Clement. ZERO stars. No. Just NO. I'm sure the guy did something to warrant the attack, but I REFUSE to read something where three dogs allegedly mauled a nasty person to death and a cop shoots one of them. I feel sorrier for the dogs!

"The Last Bookaneer" by Matthew Pearl. 5-give-me-now stars. I loved his "The Dante Club" and was afraid to read anything else by him in case it wasn't as good as it. This gripped me. I wants and I wants it nows. Thank yous.

From "The Last Bookaneer", "Books could function in two different ways... They can lull us, as in a dream, or they could change us, atom by atom, through their intellectual worth, until we are closer to God. One way is passive, the other animating- both are worthy."

"The Children's Crusade" by Ann Packer. 1.5 stars. Well written, but I have no interest in disfunctional families. I have one of my own, thanks.

"The Rocks" by Peter Nichols. 2.5 stars. Meh. Long family saga/drama with too many people to want to keep track of or care about. Not overly interesting to me.